When a young female doctor notices an unnatural amount of comas occurring in her hospital she uncovers a horrible conspiracy.
Keep track of the broadcast, cable, and streaming shows you love with our rundown of all this season's renewals, cancellations, and more.
Related News
Michael Crichton’s Novel ‘Dragon Teeth’ Bought by HarperCollins
29 July 2016 12:18 AM, +01:00 | Variety - Film News
29 July 2016 12:18 AM, +01:00 | Variety - Film News
‘Fear the Walking Dead’ Episode 4 Recap: Boots on the Ground
21 September 2015 3:00 AM, +01:00 | Variety - TV News
21 September 2015 3:00 AM, +01:00 | Variety - TV News
Want to help choose the next great Amazon Original comedy series? Stream and review now during Amazon Pilot Season.
Join us on "Style Code Live" daily to connect, shop and chat live with fashion designers, beauty experts and celebrities! Discover today's best beauty hacks and the top style secrets!
User Lists
Related lists from IMDb users
Connect with IMDb
Share this Rating
Title: Coma (1978)
Want to share IMDb's rating on your own site? Use the HTML below.
1 nomination.
See more awards »
Photos
Learn more
People who liked this also liked...
The China Syndrome
(1979)
Drama
|
Thriller
Director:
James Bridges
Stars:
Jane Fonda,
Jack Lemmon,
Michael Douglas
Runaway
(1984)
Action
|
Crime
|
Sci-Fi
Director:
Michael Crichton
Stars:
Tom Selleck,
Cynthia Rhodes,
Gene Simmons
Looker
(1981)
Drama
|
Sci-Fi
|
Thriller
Director:
Michael Crichton
Stars:
Albert Finney,
James Coburn,
Susan Dey
Westworld
(1973)
Action
|
Sci-Fi
|
Thriller
Director:
Michael Crichton
Stars:
Yul Brynner,
Richard Benjamin,
James Brolin
The Star Chamber
(1983)
Crime
|
Drama
|
Mystery
Director:
Peter Hyams
Stars:
Michael Douglas,
Hal Holbrook,
Yaphet Kotto
The Great Train Robbery
(1979)
Adventure
|
Crime
|
Drama
Director:
Michael Crichton
Stars:
Sean Connery,
Donald Sutherland,
Lesley-Anne Down
The Andromeda Strain
(1971)
Sci-Fi
|
Thriller
Director:
Robert Wise
Stars:
James Olson,
Arthur Hill,
David Wayne
Physical Evidence
(1989)
Crime
|
Mystery
|
Romance
Director:
Michael Crichton
Stars:
Burt Reynolds,
Theresa Russell,
Ned Beatty
Capricorn One
(1977)
Action
|
Sci-Fi
|
Thriller
Director:
Peter Hyams
Stars:
Elliott Gould,
James Brolin,
Brenda Vaccaro
Pursuit
(TV Movie 1972)
Drama
|
Thriller
Director:
Michael Crichton
Stars:
Ben Gazzara,
E.G. Marshall,
William Windom
Colossus: The Forbin Project
(1970)
Certificate: M
Sci-Fi
|
Thriller
Director:
Joseph Sargent
Stars:
Eric Braeden,
Susan Clark,
Gordon Pinsent
Futureworld
(1976)
Sci-Fi
|
Thriller
Director:
Richard T. Heffron
Stars:
Peter Fonda,
Blythe Danner,
Arthur Hill
Edit
Cast
| Cast overview, first billed only: | |||
| Geneviève Bujold | ... |
Dr. Susan Wheeler
(as Genevieve Bujold)
|
|
| Michael Douglas | ... | ||
| Elizabeth Ashley | ... | ||
| Rip Torn | ... | ||
| Richard Widmark | ... | ||
| Lois Chiles | ... | ||
 |
Hari Rhodes | ... |
Dr. Morelind
(as Harry Rhodes)
|
|
|
Gary Barton | ... | |
| Frank Downing | ... | ||
| Richard Doyle | ... | ||
|
|
Alan Haufrect | ... | |
|
|
Lance LeGault | ... |
Vince
(as Lance Le Gault)
|
|
|
Michael MacRae | ... |
Chief Resident
|
| Betty McGuire | ... |
Nurse
|
|
| Tom Selleck | ... | ||
Edit
Plot Summary
|
Add Synopsis
See All (111) »
Storyline
A young woman doctor discovers something sinister going on in her hospital. Relatively healthy patients are having 'complications' during simple operations and ending up in comas. The patients are then shipped off to an institute that looks after them. The young doctor suspects there is more to this than meets the eye. Written by Colin Tinto <cst@imdb.com>
Plot Keywords:
conspiracy | foot closeup | camera shot of feet | female stockinged feet | coma |Taglines:
Imagine your life hangs by a thread. Imagine your body hangs by a wire. Imagine you're not imagining.Parents Guide:
View content advisory »
Edit
See full technical specs »
Details
Country:
USALanguage:
EnglishRelease Date:
6 January 1978 (USA) See more »Also Known As:
Koma See more »Company Credits
Show detailed
company contact information
on
IMDbPro »
Technical Specs
Runtime:
| (video)Sound Mix:
MonoColor:
Color (Metrocolor)Aspect Ratio:
1.85 : 1
Edit
[Put people in irreversible comas]
Dr. George A. Harris: No decision is easy, Sue. It only looks that way when you're young. When you're older, everything is complicated. There is no black and white, only gray.
See more »
Did You Know?
Trivia
The name of the experimental clinic was The Jefferson Institute whilst the name of the hospital was the Boston Memorial Hospital, the latter closely resembling the real life Massachusetts General Hospital, though the site used for it was the real life Boston City Hospital. See more »Goofs
At around 1:26:47, when Mrs. Emerson tells Norman about the electrical inspection, the numbered blocks in her desktop calendar change between shots. See more »Quotes
Dr. Susan Wheeler: You did it.[Put people in irreversible comas]
Dr. George A. Harris: No decision is easy, Sue. It only looks that way when you're young. When you're older, everything is complicated. There is no black and white, only gray.
See more »
Patients check into the (fictitous) Boston Memorial Hospital for routine operations and, inexplicably, go into irreversible comas. Dr. Susan Wheeler (Genevieve Bujold) wants to know why much to the disappointment of her doctor boyfriend (Michael Douglas). When she tries to find answers, she finds herself marked for death.
Michael Crichton directed from Robin Cook's great novel. There are huge gaps in logic, but the film is so exciting and entertaining those can be forgiven. It's fairly well-directed and well-done overall. There are many great sequences--Bujold being stalked by a killer in the hospital late at night; a visit to the creepy Jefferson Institute; some lovely views of Cape Cod MA; Bujold, and then Douglas, tracking a suspicious oxygen line and the "accidental" death of a janitor. Also there's Jerry Goldsmith's loud, pounding score moving the picture along and, best of all, this was shot on location in Boston.
The acting is so-so. Douglas and Bujold are OK as the leads. Richard Widmark is having the time of his life playing a hospital administrator. Rip Torn and Elizabeth Ashley also turn in good performances. Also look for Tom Selleck, Ed Harris (with hair!) and Joanna Kerns in bit parts.
A very good movie. However you do have to deal with some very dated dialogue of Bujold trying to make it in a "man's" world. Also be aware that this is pretty extreme for a PG rated movie--there are fairly clear shots of Bujold's body during a shower scene and plenty of nude, dead bodies in a freezer sequence and some really gruesome scenes throughout the hospital.
This film has disappeared for some reason. It caused a lot of excitement around here when it was filmed in 1977 and was a big hit in 1978. Then it just disappeared. That's surprising considering how the careers of Cook, Crichton and Douglas have taken off. It deserves rediscovery.